


familiarity

by wbtrashking



Category: One Piece
Genre: Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Suggestive
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-30
Updated: 2020-06-30
Packaged: 2021-03-04 19:48:02
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,136
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25001887
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wbtrashking/pseuds/wbtrashking
Summary: Killer stands up, gently pushing his chair underneath Kid’s work table. “Hey,” he murmurs. “Come take a bath with me.”Kid glares up at him, and for a long moment, Killer thinks he’s going to have to put his hands on his hips, showing the redhead that, in no uncertain terms, is this up for discussion. Then, Kid takes a look at all the blood on the floor, at the mess of nuts, bolts, and hastily-drawn blueprints. He closes his eyes, inhaling slowly before he pushes himself up, tucking his lone hand into his loose trousers. “Alright.”
Relationships: Eustass Kid/Killer
Comments: 8
Kudos: 99





	familiarity

**Author's Note:**

> i started writing this in order to bribe jess [[Kawaiibooker](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kawaiibooker/pseuds/Kawaiibooker)] into doing her dingdang uni assignment, but then i also caught feelings  
> enjoy ♡

Kid throws his coat on the ground, sweat dripping off of his brow. “ _Shit_.” The sound of his captain’s boots slapping against the wooden floorboards causes Killer to look up from the paper, feeling more than seeing the frustration oozing out of the redhead’s pores.

He doesn’t ask Kid what’s wrong—he already knows.

He can’t possibly imagine the pain accompanied by losing half an arm, let alone the bitter struggle with making a fully-functioning metallic replacement for said limb. Kid's power gives him a lot of grace, allowing the naturally electric functionality of a human body to smoothly integrate wiring, but he can't use his ability as some magic cure-all. Constructing a fully-functioning limb relies on trial and error, plain and simple, and Kid has to work fast, because if his wound completely closes up, it’ll just be that much harder to get his nerves to respond to the copper and iron.

Killer stands up, gently pushing his chair underneath Kid’s work table. “Hey,” he murmurs. “Come take a bath with me.” Typically, it’s hell on earth to scrub out the tub after swathes of grease and oil cling to the porcelain, but he’s willing to undertake the herculean task for the sake of his best friend’s comfort.

Kid glares up at him, and for a long moment, Killer thinks he’s going to have to put his hands on his hips, showing the redhead that, in no uncertain terms, is this up for discussion. Then, Kid takes a look at all the blood on the floor, at the mess of nuts, bolts, and hastily-drawn blueprints. He closes his eyes, inhaling slowly before he pushes himself up, tucking his lone hand into his loose trousers. “Alright.”

They tread past the crew cabins and common rooms, waving to the rest of the gang. Killer carefully peels his own clothes off without letting his eyes wander. It’s not that Kid’s ashamed of the war wounds from fighting with the Red-Haired Pirates, but he absolutely despises being pitied for his disfigurement. They know each other well enough to read each other's true emotions, so the blonde doesn’t think his friend would mistake his intentions, but it’s still better if he takes this slowly.

Kid is a proud person. Killer would never do anything to besmirch his captain’s name, even in the privacy of their own ship’s bathroom.

He slips his mask off, happy to have a moment of relief where he can breathe clean air without feeling a little suffocated. Killer runs the tub full of scathing hot water, dumping epsom salts and essential oils in with a little smile. Kid rolls his eyes, but he doesn’t say anything—it’s one of those rituals he doesn’t understand, but he would never do anything to take away Killer’s infrequent moments of joy.

It’s a small tub, hardly built to handle the bulk of two men as large as they are, but neither of them care. Killer lets his legs drape over the sides with a sigh, letting the long tendrils of his hair float up and settle against the rugged muscle of Kid’s pecs. Similarly, Kid throws his right arm over the rim of the tub, lets the remainder of his left arm rest against Killer’s side.

They sit in silence for several minutes, just enjoying each other’s company. Eventually, Kid stands to grab soap and shampoo, sitting back down and sloshing water over the side of the tub. “I can’t wash your hair as well as I used to.”

Killer hums, listening to the sound of Kid uncapping the bottle with his eyes closed. “I don’t care. I’m long past overdue for a haircut anyways.”

No one would ever accuse Kid of being gentle, not with his horrid temper and lack of self-restraint, but Killer knows he really cares too much, under all that bluster. If he didn’t, he wouldn’t be so quick to anger.

Still, it’s nice, having this side of Kid to himself. His fingers are steady and sure, confident in a task they’ve done a hundred times before, even if he _is_ missing the other hand to complete the job more quickly. Soap runs down the sides of Killer’s face, and Kid dutifully helps him slide further down in the water to rinse it off. Afterwards, Killer entreats him to switch places, and the blonde rubs the bar of soap between his hands to generate a lather.

Killer pauses in his motions as he reaches the tense musculature of Kid’s scarred neck, gently pressing his lips to the notches of Kid’s upper spine. “You’ll figure it out,” he murmurs, kissing the warm planes of Kid’s shoulders until the redhead involuntarily shivers in his hold. “Don’t be so hard on yourself.”

“I know.” He picks up Killer’s hand, putting it to his lips, his eyes narrowed with fierce determination. “I’m just pissed because it’s not happening as quickly as I want it to. This shit takes time.”

The blonde hums, making sure the last of the suds have been rinsed off of Kid’s back before he climbs out of the tub to get towels. A wary little smile graces his lips as Kid instinctively bows his head, crouching a bit so Killer can dry his hair. Killer puts a hand on Kid’s jaw as he sneakily kisses his partner in crime. The taller man blinks in surprise, though Killer isn’t entirely sure why. He’s sparing with his affection, certainly, but he’s not shy when they’re _alone_. “Hey. You’ll win next time. With your new arm. A fancy mechanical one that you’re gonna build all by yourself.”

Kid snorts, rolling his eyes as he squeezes Killer’s waist and pulls him back in for a much more heated kiss, filled with tongue and teeth and passion. “Damn straight. It’ll be cool as hell. Just wait and see.”

Killer doesn’t have a doubt in his mind that it will be, and as he wipes his mask clean to put it back on so they can head back to Kid’s room, he teasingly slaps his captain on the back, happy to see that his mood has improved. “Glad to hear it. I was sure I was gonna have to suck your dick to improve your terrible attitude this week.”

Kid gawks at him, snarling up a storm as he stomps through the halls, trailing his partner like an angry puppy. “Who says you can’t do that anyways? Killer? _Hello_? You fucking little shit, I’ll kick your ass if you’re just toying with me.”

“Love to see you try,” Killer slyly retorts, slipping into the room just moments before Kid does, kicking the door shut and sliding the lock into place.

From the nearby common room, Wire and Heat share a dry look before groaning.

It’s going to be a loud night.

**Author's Note:**

> thanks for reading!! ♡♡
> 
> ✧tumblr: **[@quillifer](https://quillifer.tumblr.com/)**  
>  ✧twitter: **[@quillifer](https://twitter.com/quillifer)**


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